Blog Posts on Fiction

The Adults by Minnesota Reads on Feb 6, 2012 in Fiction, Alison Espach, NovelI no longer actively seek out books I know I will hate. The anaerobic thrill of speed reading through adjective abuse and gender stereotypes has lost its thrill and now I simply prefer to read things I like and not read things I don’t like. Goodbye...

The Barbarian Nurseries by Minnesota Reads on Feb 1, 2012 in Fiction, Hector Tobar, NovelThe Torres-Thompson family of Southern California has crested flush financial times and is now dipping into a place where flashing plastic can have humiliating results. Scott, a programmer, and Maureen, a stay-at-home mom, have laid off sixty-six per...

No flowers in this attic by Minnesota Reads on Jan 30, 2012 in Fiction, Novel, Shalom AuslanderShalom Auslander is not for the faint of heart or easily offended. His writing is angry, bitter, hilarious, some might even call it blasphemous. It will make you squirm. It’s uncomfortable and itchy and may induce squirming, which is what makes...

Scored by Minnesota Reads on Jan 27, 2012 in Fiction, Lauren McLaughlin, Young adultIt’s pretty clear that my current obsession is dystopian fiction, but I recently stopped reading a handful of young adult dystopian novels. How could I read a book where love needs to be cured? Because, apparently, everything bad in our society...

Dresden Files Book 13: Ghost Story by Minnesota Reads on Jan 25, 2012 in Fiction, Dresden Files, Jim Butcher, NovelBook thirteen of the Dresden Files series opens six months after our hero, Harry Dresden, sinks into the water after being shot through the heart while on his brother’s boat. He had just murdered the woman he loved, saved his daughter, and wipe...

Fiction vs. Nonfiction — Or is it really a competition? by Anatomy of Perceval on Jan 21, 2012 in Fiction, Nonfiction, The Dooms, The Writing Life, Writing, novels, essays, nonfiction, fear, commentary column, commentary blog, Eyes on Life blog, taking risks, andy rooneyAs I’ve been working this week on the assessment read-through for Perceval’s Shadow, I’ve been astounded by how much I accomplished with the first draft, including additional research, character work, new medical and psychology rese...

Some sign of my own by Minnesota Reads on Jan 17, 2012 in Fiction, Aimee Bender, NovelThere was a span of time in the early to mid-aughts where I would buy every man I was romantically interested in a copy of An Invisible Sign of My Own by Aimee Bender. I probably hold the record for buying the most copies of this book. I could probab...